New Venge ViAS Discs in time for the cobbles?

Look closely at Fernando Gaviria’s Specialized S-Works Venge ViAS and there are a couple of things missing compared to the one Peter Sagan and others are riding this season: the brakes. Look even closer and you’ll also spot that the Roval wheels have no brake track and the levers are Shimano R785 hydraulic disc brake levers.

Introducing the world’s fast ‘smart’ bike

If electronic gears aren’t enough for you, then how about a bike with a built in cycling computer that will coach you as you ride? That dream is now a reality with the SpeedX Leopard bike, which also comes with plenty of other bells and whistles including integrated front and rear lights that turn off and on when required, and fully integrated cabling like the Venge ViAS mentioned above and the Trek Madone.

However, unlike the Venge ViAS or Madone, you won’t have to remortgage your house or sell an organ to afford one with a Shimano Ultegra Di2 version available for the very reasonable sum of £1800, while the Shimano 105 version costs just £1000. You can buy one by supporting SpeedX’s Kickstarter campaign.

The bad news came when the company realised its mistake and issued an email to its customers saying that it would be cancelling all orders on the bike. Better luck next time, guys!

New rubber from Michelin

Michelin has been working hard over the winter, and has released its new Power tyre to replace the Pro4 Service Course, which it claims gives 25 per cent decrease in rolling resistance for a 25mm tyre, and an energy saving equivalent to 10 watts.